A Short History of the World According to Sheep, by Sally Coulthard

March 28, 2024 Book Reviews 3 ★★★★½

A Short History of the World According to Sheep, by Sally CoulthardA Short History of the World According to Sheep by Sally Coulthard
Narrator: Karen Cass
Published by W. F. Howes on January 1, 2021 (book first published Aug. 6, 2020)
Genres: History
Format: Audiobook
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible | Chirp
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four-half-stars

An addictively free-ranging survey of the huge impact that sheep have had on human history.

From the plains of ancient Mesopotamia to the rolling hills of medieval England to the vast sheep farms of modern-day Australia, sheep have been central to the human story.

Starting with our Neolithic ancestors' first forays into sheep-rearing nearly 10,000 years ago, they've fed us, clothed us, changed our diet and languages, helped us to win wars, decorated our homes, and financed pioneers and privateers to conquer large swathes of the earth. Vast fortunes have been built on the backs of sheep, and cities shaped by shepherds' markets and meat trading.

Sally Coulthard weaves the rich and fascinating story of sheep into a vivid and colourful tapestry, brimful of engaging anecdotes and remarkable ovine facts, whose multiple strands reflect the deep penetration of these woolly animals into every aspect of human society and culture.

Review

I loved Sally Coulthard’s A Short History of the World According to Sheep! As a fiber crafter and life-long history buff, I found the book fascinating, well-researched, and entertaining. Coulthard explores the ways in which sheep have both shaped and been shaped by human civilization, from our first domestication of the animals to today.

As some reviewers have noted, the book is a bit UK-centric ( perhaps understandable, given the author’s nationality.) While Ms. Coulthard does discuss Mongolian sheepherders, wool traders in medieval Europe, Icelandic sweaters, Navajo churros, the effects of sheep on the landscape, and a variety of other topics, her main focus during the medieval and modern period is Britain, from its land to its social structure, laws, and wool industry. I would have liked a little more about the history of sheep and wool in Europe, the Americas, and Asia during those periods. For instance, the author does not explore how the introduction of sheep impacted indigenous peoples in South America, particularly in Patagonia.

Audiobook review: Karen Cass does a very good job reading the book, skillfully using voices and accents to differentiate quoted material. It’s a little harder to tell when she is reading footnotes versus the regular text, but I could usually figure it out.

Note: This book was published in hardcover in the US as Follow The Flock: How Sheep Shaped Human Civilization. The audiobook uses the UK title.

Challenges: #23in2023; Audiobook Challenge 2023; The Backlist Reader Challenge 2023; COYER Upside Down, Chapter 2

four-half-stars

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

  • #23in2023
  • Audiobook Challenge 2023
  • COYER Upside-Down 2023: Chapter 2
  • The Backlist Reader Challenge 2023

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